Earlier this month 30 farmers from across the country joined us for our Lincolnshire Farm Study Tour. Organised by IfA on behalf of RASE’s wider ‘Farm of the Future’ programmes, the study tours involve bringing farmers together for two days and a night, showing examples of differing farming systems and creating an environment for sharing knowledge and learning from peers.
Agri-food is Lincolnshire’s largest industry producing over £2 billion worth of crops and livestock, which is 11% of the English total. The farming landscape is diverse, ranging from the record-breaking cereal production in the open Lincolnshire Wolds, to precision vegetable production in the fenlands.
Visit one – the South Ormsby Estate
Kicking things off in the vast Lincolnshire Wolds, the first visit took the group to the South Ormsby Estate. Here we were shown around by estate manager Paul Barnes, who reminded the group that in the words of Charles Darwin ‘it is not the most intelligent species that survive, it is the ones that adapt the most to change’.
With a core focus on increasing biodiversity, the estate comprises 1,200ha of arable and 400 head of Pedigree Lincoln Red cattle. Whilst the estate includes large areas of permanent pasture, the cattle are integrated into the arable rotation through cover crops and grass leys.
Known as a more modern native breed, the Lincoln Red is a hardy animal which finishes easily off grass. At South Ormsby the cattle are outwintered, spending 365 days of the year grazing. The cattle are mob grazed to avoid grass poaching and to maximise daily liveweight gain (DLG). Currently 260 cows and calves are kept in a 1ha mob and moved every 2-3 days. In winter this includes feeding the cattle roughly six bales of haylage per day depending on the amount of grass, which is wound out across the pasture to reduce poaching.
The principle of mob grazing is to graze a third, trample a third and leave a third. It differs from rotational grazing systems because paddocks are given a longer rest period, which means livestock graze taller covers. Compared with set-stocking, it boosts pasture resilience by developing deeper rooting systems and therefore can improve the soil structure.
The average yearly rainfall at South Ormsby is 865ml. This year 266ml fell in October alone. Despite that, the outwintered cattle are achieving a 460g/day DLG and are finishing at around 26 months.
Having seen the cattle system in action, the study tour group were then shown the cover crop mixes grown on farm, followed by the recently established viticulture system. The cultivation and harvesting of grapes is the UK’s fastest-growing agricultural sector, with wine production expected to reach between 25 and 29 million bottles by 2032, due to rising temperatures.
At South Ormsby they have planted 12,600 grape vines across 3.6ha, which will be ready for a first harvest in three years. It will be up to ten years before the vineyard is regarded as established and viable.
Going forward, the estate aims to add value to produce grown in the area through high-quality food processing and by supporting the sale of produce locally to reduce food miles, protecting the environment and creating a stronger connection between growers and consumers.
Looking after the natural environment is a priority for South Ormsby Estate and agriculture plays a crucial role in its protection and conservation, with frequent hedge planting and dedicated areas for biodiversity to flourish. The farming enterprise at South Ormsby forms part of a wider holistic approach to estate management, with conservation centre to every decision made. The team are enthusiastic and pioneering in their ambitions and we would strongly recommend any farmer should visit the estate if given the opportunity.
Visit two – the Lincoln Institute for Agri-Food Technology
From South Ormsby Estate, we took our study tour participants south to Lincoln University. The Lincoln Institute for Agri-Food Technology (LIAT) based at the University’s Riseholme Campus is home to a working farm with specialist research facilities. LIAT’s team brings together sector-leading expertise in a diverse range of areas such as; artificial intelligence, robotics, engineering, crop science, environmental sustainability, food manufacturing, product development and supply chains.
This was an opportunity for the farmers to witness first hand future robotic systems, including technology which will help farmers reach tree planting targets set under the UK Net Zero strategy. LIAT is also home to ongoing trials looking at glyphosate resistance across a range of the UK’s most dominant weeds.
After a jam-packed day, all study tour participants enjoyed an evening meal and accommodation which allows for fruitful discussion (and sometime debate!) providing further opportunity to forge connections between farming peers.
Visit three – Dyson’s Nocton Estate
For day two, the study tour participants met in the morning at Dyson’s Nocton Estate. In total, the business farms 14,000 acres, producing 35,000 tonnes of wheat, 9,000 tonnes of spring barley, 15,000 tonnes potatoes, 9,000 tonnes of vining peas, and 100,000 tonnes of energy crops. Dyson Farming employs 169 people; their average age is 38 versus an average in the industry of 59.
While this is a farming business very unlike the average UK farm, they are committed to research and investment for the betterment of the whole UK agricultural sector. The farm is of course producing huge quantities of food. The Nocton farm has five grain stores with the capacity to hold 20,000 tonnes of grain per shed.
However, whilst efficient food production and farm profitability is of great importance to the business, environmental sustainability and local community are also the key focus of every decision made on farm.
By definition they are already a net zero farming business but have set a target to further reduce emissions by 80% by 2035. The Nocton farm includes 10 environmental schemes with options incorporated from a rolling Environmental Stewardship HLS scheme, mid-tier and higher tier Countryside Stewardship and now SFI. They have 1,300ha of environmental features at Nocton alone and have mapped the natural capital on the farm which includes 11,713 trees and 249m of water courses.
The plan has been to employ as many of the five regenerative principles as possible to improve soil health and build resilience, while recognising that some measures can’t be introduced immediately.
Potatoes have made being regenerative more challenging, especially when it comes to soil disturbance. However, trials are helping to pinpoint which operations can be dropped and how the potatoes can have less of an impact, but there is a balance to be achieved so that yields and quality don’t suffer. Another solution has been to replace some of the forage maize with an oats/vetch mix, which also goes to AD plant but is less demanding on the soil and has an inherent fertility benefit.
An Anglian Water trials site on the Lincolnshire farm, looking at 19 cover crop species and four different mixes, has been helpful in refining seed rates and understanding more about the best establishment conditions for winter cover.
Livestock integration is ongoing with around 5,000 sheep grazing the 3,000ha of cover crops, leys and permanent pasture at Nocton. Herbal leys are grazed tightly and then brought back into arable production by direct drilling. Organic manures are used to reduce synthetic nitrogen applications, while soil organic matter levels are being monitored.
As well as sharing this knowledge with the farming community, Dyson Farming also works closely with a local school and hosts regular events and activities to bring residents from the local villages onto the farm to better understand what the farm is doing and way.
Visit four – Dyson’s Carrington Farm
Knowledge sharing was also important at Dyson’s Carrington Farm, which was the final stop of the two-day tour. The Carrington site is grade 1 fenland soil and also home to a large AD plant which processes 111 tonnes an hour of feedstock.
Recognising that there was an opportunity to use the heat and excess CO2 produced from the AD plant, Dyson Farming invested £30 million in 6ha of glasshouses which will soon be expanded to a 10ha system. They expect this investment to be paid back within 10 years. The glasshouses were built for strawberry production and the current 6.5ha site is producing 600 tonnes of strawberries 51 weeks of the year from 700,000 strawberry plants. During the winter months, all M&S strawberries sold in the UK are produced at the Carrington site.
Labour is the biggest cost variable within the system, with the glasshouse employees packing 1.5t/hour of strawberries. Using technology called Priva, the team monitor labour hours and offer bonuses to employees who exceed their hourly picking target. Human labour is supported by robots which can pick throughout the night. However, as a comparison, a robot can pick 2.5 berries a minute whereas a human can pick an average of 50 strawberries/minute, proving that there is more development needed here before human labour can be replaced.
In theme with the sustainability ethos of the business, they have cut down on pesticide use by 85%, replacing it with biological control. This includes natural predators such as aphids and thrips.
In summary, the study tour participants experienced a vast spectrum of farming systems incorporating both lessons learned from previous generations and technology of the future. While much of this technology or investment cannot yet be replicated across all farms in the UK, the ethos of business and environment sustainability working alongside one another can be. This study tour enabled our participant farmers to take themselves out of their business setting and to reflect upon what is to come for the future of their farms, and the steps that could be taken to ensure resilience in their own businesses.
The opportunity to meet new farming peers and to discuss the experience is a unique benefit of the study tour structure. We are hugely grateful to the Esmee Fairbairn Foundation for their support which enables us to run these programmes and also to The Dulverton Trust.
Should you wish to join us on any of our 2024 study tours please register your interest by emailing deborahc@i4agri.org.
